Harrison Bergeron – Response Questions

1. What has guaranteed equality in the story? The Handicapper General, and all of the handicaps they have had put on the citizens.

2. How old is Harrison?
Fourteen

3. What has happened to Harrison and why? He was arrested for not abiding by the new rules of equality.

4. How has the government made George and Hazel equal? What does George have to wear? And what does this do? The government had made George and Hazel both wear bags of
birdshot, George had to wear a mental handicap radio on his ear, to stop him from having intelligent thoughts.


5. What does Hazel say she would do if she were Handicap General?
She would have chimes on sundays, in honor of religion.

6. What is the name of the Handicap General?
Diana Moon Glampers.

7. What is the consequence for taking lessening the weight of the handicap bag?
Two years in prison and a two thousand dollar fine for every ball taken out of the bag.

8. What reason does George give for not trying to cheat?
If he tried to get away with it, then other people would try to get away with it, competition would return to society, and the world would be sent back to the "dark ages".

· Because of this reason, what can we infer about George’s opinion of the current laws?George agrees with the current laws and supports equality.

9. Why wasn’t the news bulletin clear at first to George and Hazel and other viewers?
The news announcer had a serious speech impediment, like all other announcers.

10. Why did the ballerina apologize about her voice?
Because her voice was a very "Unfair" voice for a woman to use, therefor her voice was very beautiful compared to others.

11. What is the news bulletin?
The bulletin in which delivers the news about Harrison.

12. Describe Harrison Bergeron with all of his handicaps?
His appearance was "Halloween and Hardware", nobody had borne heavier handicaps, a tremendous pair of earphones, spectacles with thick wavy lenses to make him half blind and scrap metal hung all over him, he looked like a walking junkyard.

13. What does Harrison declare on television?
He declares that he is "Emperor", a greater ruler than any man that had ever lived.

14. What happens to Harrison? Be specific.
Diana Moon Glampers walked in, shot him and the ballerina with a double-barreled ten-gauge shotgun.

15. What does this story suggest about human nature?
The strength of human nature at its best is just as influential than the laws, and the H-G’s system and weaponry.




Short Stories - Literary Devises Title: Harrison Bergeron

Point of View: 3rd person

Protagonist: The government, equality and the H-C General.

What type of character is the Protagonist?


Antagonist: Harrison, Hazel and George

Describe the setting: Society is brainwashed, controlled and enslaved to the government in order for everybody to be equal.


Type of Conflict: Man vs Man, Man vs Environment.

Describe the main conflict:
The government has brainwashed society and handicapped them so they are all "equal".

Describe the Climax of the Story:
When Harrison declares himself emperor over the news and is shot by Diana.

How does the Protagonist change over the course of the story?:
The protagonists do not change over the story, they remain brainwashed until the end of the story.

Describe the relationship between the title and the theme.

The title "Harrison Bergeron", relates to the story, because Harrison is one of the key characters in the story.

How does the main conflict help to illustrate the theme?

The main conflict, which is the process of brainwashing and equalizing society, illustrates an odd, dark and atmospheric theme in the story.

How does the climax help to illustrate the theme?

The climax, in which Harrison is shot, illustrates the H-G's power and authority and the overall dark theme.

Give examples of each of the following literary terms in the story (use quotes):

Simile:
"His thoughts fled in panic, like bandits from a burglar alarm"

Metaphor:
"He was a walking junkyard"

Personification:
"Harrison Bergeron, age fourteen," she said in a grackle squawk

Foreshadowing (give both elements):
George talks about what would happen if everybody began to rebel towards the H-G and what would be the result. Later, Harrison rebels and is killed.

Irony:
The fact that you expect Harrison to overthrow the government, but he ends up dead in the end.

Imagery:
Clanking, clownish, and huge, Harrison stood - in the center of the studio.

Describe the relationships between the class theme and the story.

The class theme is "Humanity", in this story the government attempts to create a humane lifestyle by introducing equality to society, when actually the process of forcing equality upon the people seems inhumane.